The present invention refers to a suction device suitable to create a vacuum in containers, particularly for the preservation in a vacuum of food and of eprishable materials in general.
It is well know that almost every type of food, either solid, semi-solid or liquid, tends to deteriorate rapidly when it is in contact with air, due to the aggression of air components, oxygen in particular.
The "oxidization" of food can be prevented by preserving it in a vacuum.
Although there are suction devices to create a vacuum in containers, this technique to preserve food is not very widespread, on the contrary it is absolutely unknown to most consumers, at the domestic level, due to the drawbacks of the suction systems, that will be briefly illustrated.
First of all, the known suction devices are very expensive, bulky and heavy, for this reason they must be fixed installations, at least during use. This equipment, in fact, is fixed to the wall or leaned on a flat surface and is connected to a valve of the container in which the vacuum must be created, by means of a flexible tube.
As far as the internal structure of such equipment is concerned, is comprise an electric motor, on whose exit shaft an eccentric is mounted that directly actuates the piston of a suction pump whose shaft is perpendicular to the axis of the motor shaft. The position of the motor and of the pump plus the direct transmission between these elements require a high power, and therefore an over-dimensioning of the whole equipment.
Although the problem of making the above equipment portable and handy, in order to increase is usefulness, is strongly felt, up to now this could not be realized, meanly due to the technical solutions adopted in the devices presently on the market.
The applicant knows about a "portable" device consisting of a manual pump that presents the clear drawback of not reaching acceptable vacuum levels and of requiring the user to grip it with both hands.
A device for domestic use is also known, being suitable to create a vacuum in containers and comprising a casing which houses an electric motor, a suction pump provided with a tip connected to a valve located on the container cover.
This devices is provided with electronic means suitable to establish the vacuum degree inside the container by measuring the motor absorption power and comprising transmission devices in which a bevel gear pair is arranged to transmit motion from the motor to an eccentric actuating the pump.
This device is illustrated in the Italian Patent Application MI91 A 000927 filed by the same applicant on Apr. 03, 1991.